Summer Festival Dream
by JinxJen
Summary: Ulquihime FC's Tanabata Festival Contest 2009 Submission in BA. On the first day in winter when Orihime came back to school after the War, she suddenly felt tired in her eyelids and had an adventure about the star festival in her dream.
1. CHAPTER0: ENDLESS DREAM

**ULQUIHIME FC'S TANABATA FESTIVAL CONTEST 2009**

**FANFICTION DISTRIBUTION**

**SUBMITTING FOR ULQUIHIME FC AT BA**

**CONSTESTANT:** JinxJen

**SUMMARY:** After Orihime returned to Karakura Town from Hueco Mundo, she had endless dreams at night about Ulquiorra that didn't make any sense to her. On the first day in winter when she came back to school, she suddenly felt tired in her eyelids and had an adventure about the star festival in her dream.

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:** At first, I intended to make a one shot with only 1,000 words. In the end, it turned out into a series with several chapters for about 10,000 words. There are some random _italic_ words I like to use just to emphasize the thoughts and the words. Please excuse some bad grammar because I'm not really a Native English person myself. But I did proofread carefully before I submitted. Hope you could enjoy this midnight summer dream.

**WARNING: ONLY M RATED AT THE LAST CHAPTER. **You can read the rest with your cheese.

**DISCLAIMER:** Bleach doesn't belong to me. Bleach is Kubo's masterpiece. Ulquiorra and Orihime don't belong to me. They are Kubo Tite-sensei's shippy. They belong to each other.

* * *

**SUMMER FESTIVAL DREAM**

**CHAPTER 0 - PROLOGUE: ENDLESS DREAM**

"_If it's because of the heart that you are talking about, then it's that heart that brought me to you."_

"_I don't dislike you."_

"_You have never been afraid of me."_

"_Even if my body and my soul were returned to ash, my heart was entrusted to you."_

"_I want to be the reason for your whole being."_

"_Come with me, woman."_

Orihime opened her eyes slowly and lazily in her bed. She was crying in her sleep.

She sat up in her bed and looked out the window to night sky scenery at her right side emptily. Her alarm clock read 4:00 A.M.

Recently, ever since she returned to her home, Karakura Town, every night, she had those same nostalgic dreams again. She was dreaming about _him_.

They were really cutting her sleep. They didn't seem like any normal dreams she had before. But they didn't really make any sense to her either because in those dreams, _he_ was saying something that _he_ had never said to her before. Well, _except the last one_. But the expression _he_ made in the dream when_ he_ said that sentence was the face that she had never seen before. So gentle yet full of sadness.

_They weren't real. _

She reminded herself. She didn't want to recall them again. But the memories kept coming.

It was just like the time when her brother died, she was crying in her sleep, calling out his name every night. But instead of dreaming about past memories of_ him_ like she did with her brother, she kept dreaming about something of_ him_ that weren't past memories. Those dreams themselves were just coming in disjointed bits and pieces in same place that she didn't recognize where it was over and over again.

Were they all in her imagination? Were all the things _he_ said in the dream made by her mind? If so, why did she think or dream about _him_ like that? To her, what was _he_ exactly?

"Ulquiorra." She murmured.

_I never had chance to call out your name. _

_You just came in my life like a wind, no, more like an earthquake, and was also gone like a wind. You didn't leave anything to me but my regretful sentiment. You even took away my heart. _

_I kept reaching and reaching my hand out, but I couldn't catch you. Your hand. And your heart. They were all turned to ash. _

_I didn't want to believe that you were dead because I still felt the warmth of the ash in my hand. Dead people never had the warmth like that._

"Are you still here in this world? Someday will I be able to meet you again?"

Orihime thought she might be really stressful enough to talk by herself in the middle of night. She needed to sleep to regain her energy and got up early for school tomorrow.

Orihime took in a deep breath then released it, trying to relax every muscle in her body. She lied down on the bed once more and slowly adjusted herself to get into sleep.

* * *

To be continued...


	2. CHAPTER1: DECEMBER 7TH DREAM

**CHAPTER 1: DECEMBER 7****TH**** DREAM**

Today was Saturday, December 7th.

Orihime woke up at 7:00 A.M.

After she packed up everything from her text book to her bento, she quickly ran out of the apartment and leisurely strolled down to the school road.

As she was observing the surroundings around her and the blue sky above, she felt an odd sense of peace that filled the air as though the town had never been in danger of being completely erased from its existence. But Orihime knew better.

Even though they had managed to stop Aizen from creating the King's Key by using Karakura Town, they had not been able to catch or destroy him before he escaped and hid once more, this time deeper into Hueco Mundo. The other Shinigami traitors, Gin and Tousen, followed behind him, not even looking worried at this slight set back.

All the Espada that Aizen had so "lovingly" created had been killed. But as Aizen said as long as he still had Hōgyoku in his hand, he could make another army stronger than the previous one. And as long as Aizen still hadn't given up his goal to open the Royal King's dimension, Soul Society was still at war.

After Orihime was retrieved from Hueco Mundo, Soul Society erased her status as a traitor and thanked her for her great distribution in the war. Because Orihime finally had chance to prove her worth.

It was Orihime who tried to reject the existence of Hōgyoku. But she couldn't reject it completely. She could only reject it back to the state where it was sealed in the beginning. Which meant the Hōgyoku would be no use for a long time until it was awoken again. That action made Aizen couldn't use it to create the King's Key, so he had no choice but retreat.

But no one knew exactly the time when Aizen would show up again. So they told us it would be better if we were alert.

After she stopped her thought, her legs also stopped at her classroom.

She wasn't late today. Today was the first day she come back to school after she returned to Karakura Town.

She couldn't believe in herself that she had fever and body stress for a whole week after she came back to her own room. She was still fine when she was in the battle. Yet when she felt relieved in her own bedroom, her body started to wreck down.

Fortunately, Tatsuki visited her right at the time when Orihime came back and was terrified when she saw Orihime lying upside down on the bed. If it was not for Tatsuki discovering Orihime's fever, Orihime was sure that she couldn't recover it well in one week. Maybe it would become worse and she had to take a month to recover. And that was the only thing she didn't want to happen because final exam would come at the end of this month.

She wouldn't afford her scholarship to her wanted university if she failed this exam. She needed to be good grade at her 3 years in high school.

Also it would be retard if she was the only one who fell back while all her friends were going to graduate. And she made a promise with them that they will get into the same university together. The best university in Japan, Tokyo University.

The distance from the university to her apartment was farther though. Well, she didn't mind as long as she woke up on time. She had feet to run after all.

"Good morning, Hime-chan~~~~!"

It was Chizuru who greeted her first. But this time was not a grab on her boobs from behind, but a full-body hug from the front.

It seemed that Chizuru was so happy to see her after a long time. She even had tears in her eyes.

"I miss you so much." Chizuru looked at Orihime.

Her eyes were a bit swelling behind her glasses.

"Hm. You seem more beautiful than before. Let me feel you after a long ti-"

As soon as Chizuru could finish her sentence, she received a fast blow from the side by the karate national champion, Tatsuki, and flew away from Orihime.

"Urg… After a long time not seeing Orihime, our comedy duo is still strong as ever." Chizuru who was lying down in her own nosebleed gave Tatsuki a thumb up. Not sure if that nosebleed was from Tatsuki's blow or from the view of Orihime's boobs from the side.

"I told you this isn't a comedy duo. And Orihime has just recovered her health, don't stress her." Tatsuki said out loud with her irritation.

And then she turned on Orihime, "Good morning, Orihime."

"Good morning, Tatsuki-chan. And Chizuru-chan too." Orihime gave out her smile to greet Tatsuki and Chizuru.

"Yah~~! Hime-chan greeted me with her goddess smile of ever. Please let me worship you, Hime-chan~~!" Chizuru got up with the nosebleed still on her face. She was still hyper as ever.

And then Orihime noticed that Keigo was crying while Mizuiro tried to comfort him but failed and then Mizuiro totally ignored him.

Orihime asked Tatsuki what happened to Keigo. Tatsuki was surprised because it was the first time that Orihime noticed another guy besides Ichigo. Maybe it was a good thing. She would be better making more friends with other guys rather than sticking to that idiot and clueless guy who didn't get any good results back.

"He's just upset because Ichigo doesn't come today." Tatsuki replied with a bit irritation in her voice.

"Hm? Why?" Orihime was surprise when she heard Kurosaki-kun's name.

Ah. Right? She didn't see him today. She even didn't notice that he was not here today. Class would start soon in 5 minutes. Did he oversleep?

"Because yesterday I beat a hell out of him. So maybe he had to rest for his wound." As Tatsuki said, she held up her fist to show Orihime. It was bandaged.

"Eh? Why did Tatsuki-chan fight with Kurosaki-kun?" Orihime startled.

Tatsuki and Kurosaki-kun are childhood friends. They used to fight at the dojo in the past when they were children.

But as far as she knew, she never thought that Tatsuki would fight Kurosaki-kun again. Or… maybe…

Orihime looked at Tatsuki with her worried look. "Is it because of me?"

"No. It's not like that. He just pissed me off when I told him at least come to visit you once. And he just hummed and hawed and didn't give me a clear answer. I had to beat him up to get the answer. But it seems that I did too much so he skipped school today."

Orihime felt sad after hearing that.

After the battle in Hueco Mundo, Kurosaki-kun hadn't looked into her eyes once. More likely, he avoided to look at her directly even though she said what was happened in that place was not really his fault. (It was her fault actually.) But Orihime knew better even if everybody forgave him, Kurosaki-kun hadn't forgiven himself yet.

Well, actually even Orihime was on the same boat. She still hadn't forgiven herself either, for calling out Kurosaki-kun and turning him into a monster, for not standing to help Ishida-kun, for not being able to catch Ulquiorra's hand. Everything.

She had not forgotten even if she did try to forget. It was just like yesterday's dream. Her chest started to hurt at the place where her heart was when she started to remember _him_.

Class already started. Everyone got to his or her seat. She looked over Kurosaki-kun's blank seat and then Rukia's blank seat. She also realized that Ishida's seat and Chad's seat were also blank. She sighed.

Why did everyone skip out the school on the day she first came back school?

But maybe it was a good thing because she was not sure if they could be able to look at her normally or not. She thought she might still feel hurt if they kept looking as her like something fragile. Because she already proved herself to them that she was not easy to be broken.

If it was Ulquiorra, _he_ would tell her that _he_ was not here to pamper her. Oddly, every time she was with _him_, she felt that she had another super strength to resist whatever bad happened to her.

Orihime gazed at the palm of her hand. In fifteen years of her life, it was the first time she slapped someone on the face. And a guy regardless. And _he_ was not even human.

She started to chuckle by herself. And then she realized her thought. While she tried not to think about _him_, it seemed that _he_ just kept coming in her thought, just to make her stronger both inside and outside.

She stopped feeling sad about Kurosaki-kun and everyone.

Now she started to think about _him_.

No no.

She shook her head lightly. She needed to stop. She was still in class.

As she bent her head down to the desk to hide any blushing coming from her face, her eyes suddenly felt tired and her eyelids felt heavy.

Unknowingly, she sunk herself into a dark world. She felt asleep in class.

* * *

To be continued...


	3. CHAPTER2: MIDDAY DREAM

**CHAPTER 2: MIDDAY DREAM**

"Inoue!!"

_Someone was calling her name._

"Inoue Orihime!!"

_Who?_

"Wake up!!"

_Wake up? But I was in class. _

_There was no way that she was sleeping right? Wait or maybe she was sleeping in class._

Her eyes opened widely and she stood up suddenly.

"Red beans and tomatoes!!" Some words were coming from her mouth.

"I'm afraid that I don't have those. And our school doesn't have any meal like that either." Someone was still talking next to her with a low voice.

As Orihime's vision started to clear, she saw a figure of an older man that she didn't know.

_Wasn't Oichi-sensei who she had seen the one in charged the first period?_

"Who are you? Where's Oichi-sensei?"

"Are you finally awake? I'm your teacher. Your homeroom teacher. And my name is not Oichi-sensei."

"Ah, I'm sorry sensei. I felt asleep." Whatever happened to Oichi-sensei would come later. First she needed to apologize for sleeping in class to this sensei.

"I think you're tired after being discharged from the hospital. Do you want to go to the infirmary?"

_Being discharged from the hospital? What was this sensei talking about? Since when was she in the hospital? She only had a fever at home._

As she was going to answer, a school bell signal the end of the period rang.

"You are lucky today. I think you better go home and take a good rest." The old man sensei said and patted her shoulder. He went up to the board to pack his things and walked out of the classroom.

As Orihime finally looked clearly the surrounding around her, she realized that this was not her usual classroom. It was a classroom but not the classroom that she first came in and sat down to her seat. This classroom was bigger and seemed more different in color. She was puzzled.

_Did she sleep walking to another classroom? No, she was sure that she didn't have that kind of habit. Besides, Oichi-sensei and her friends would stop her from doing that. _

_So then where was she really?_

"Hey, Orihime." A voice from behind was calling her.

She turned her head back.

It was Tatsuki. So she didn't sleep walking into another classroom at all. Because Tatsuki was in this classroom.

"Tatsuki-chan."

"Are you sure that you got enough sleep yesterday? You were totally sleeping an entire period."

"Eh? Really?" She didn't know.

It was just time seem so short to her. Was it because of those dreams she had every night that were cutting her sleep? And she had to feel asleep during class.

And then when she looked up to Tatsuki again, she noticed something strange. Tatsuki's uniform was different. Not the same as the one she first saw before class.

"Tatsuki-chan, did you change your uniform?"

This time, it was Tatsuki that gave her an odd look as if she was talking something strange here. Tatsuki reached out her hand and grabbed Orihime's face closer to her face. After looking carefully at Orihime's eyes, Tatsuki let her face go.

"What are you talking about? This is our second year uniform."

_Ah! A second year uniform! _

_Wait, what did she just say? _

_Second year? _

_Since when did she start going to second year?_

She was sure that she hadn't taken the final exam yet. And she was sure that she was still fifteen years old. But she will be a second year in April next year.

_Why did the time pass on rapidly and she didn't aware of it? It couldn't be. Right?_

And then Orihime started to notice that she herself also wore the same uniform as Tatsuki.

"Right now which period we are in?" She asked Tatsuki an obvious question, just to make sure the time could not pass that much quickly as she was sleeping.

"Fifth period."

Ah, so she felt asleep from the 1st period to the 5th one on her first day of comeback school.

_But why did the whole scenery change just like time was passed in 5 months? Because right now she was a second year student._

OK! One more question to Tatsuki, just to make sure that she was not dreaming here.

But as soon as she was going to voice out the question, there were hands grabbing her boobs from behind. Feel so familiar.

"Hime-chan~~~~!!"

It was Chizuru. If Chizuru were here so it meant that I was not dreaming?

"Uwah, your boobs are so sof-"

As Chizuru was going to finish her sentence, a kick from the side was thrown to her by a quick Tatsuki. And she was flying. It was just like any normal day. _Yet why?_

When Orihime started looking back to Chizuru who gathered her strength back to stand up and gave out a thumb to Tatsuki. She noticed that Chizuru's hair was longer than before. What was really happening here?

"Hime-chan~~~~!! Don't forget to wear yukata tonight. I'm looking forward it."

"Yukata? What for?" Chizuru's words made Orihime say her thought out loud.

This time, both Chizuru and Tatsuki were looking at her like something incredulous. Chizuru quickly grabbed Orihime's head to her breast like she was comforting her,

"Hime-chan~~~!! Are you still talking in your sleep? How cute ~~~!!"

At that time, Orihime still didn't understand the situation and also Chizuru's action.

"You saw Orihime sleeping, yet you didn't wake her up." Tatsuki made a sigh and a comment.

"Because ~~~~ Hime-chan's sleeping face was so~~~ sexy~~~!!" Chizuru said with her joyful voice.

OK. She had to ask them or she won't get anything out of this strangeness.

"Ano… Tatsuki-chan, Chizuru-chan, what's the date today?"

"Don't tell me that you had forgotten? You are the one who look forward it most." Chizuru said. Her voice sounded higher pitch than before.

"Orihime. It's Tanabata today." Tastuki said.

"Tanabata? Tanabata as in July 7th?" Orihime asked again to be sure the date.

"Yes. Yesterday it was you who told everyone to prepare. Did you forget?"

No, yesterday, she was sure that she had been at home. And she was sure that today was December 7th, because she checked the calendar before she went to school.

If what Tatsuki said were true, then it seemed that she was in the future of 7 months later, of this day. _How could thing like that happen?_

"We got lucky because today is Saturday. So we can get out of school early." Chizuru said with her enthusiasm.

"Yeah, the boys skipped school today, just to prepare for the festival in the town."

"I think they are gonna show up in the festival soon."

"The boys?" Orihime asked in curiosity. She still hadn't quite accepted the time travel idea.

"Ichigo, Ishida, Chad, Mizuiro and Keigo went to the festival for the volunteers." Chizuru answered.

"They are more like getting punishment by volunteering." Tatsuki corrected.

"Are they still in the same class as us?"

"Yes, it's destiny for you and me to be in the same class, Hime-chan~~"

Chizuru clapped her hand together and spin around crazily that Tastuki had to make a chop to her head.

"You get the question wrong."

"But since the day Orihime got herself a boyfriend, I was so lonely. Nobody play with me." Chizuru whined.

_Boyfriend? Me? What did the future me do during 7 months? By the way who was he? Was it okay to ask? _

_Asking my friend about who my boyfriend was seemed odd in this situation._

"Didn't you pair up with Keigo? Go and play with him."

"You don't understand girl's dream, Tatsuki. Girl wants to play with girls. Boys are just our mascot."

"I'm a girl. Why do I have to understand that?"

"Well, maybe Tatsuki has a good boyfriend."

"Tatsuki has a boyfriend?" Okay! Orihime knew it was strange for her to have a boyfriend, but it was stranger for Tatsuki too. She couldn't be help but keep asking the question.

"Hime-chan~~, you knew the guy. They have the same kanji "dragon" in their name."

"Dragon… It can't be…I…Ishi…Ishida-kun?" Orihime tried to cover her mouth for not too much surprised. She didn't know they were like that in the future. She still thought that Ishida had a crush on Rukia.

Tatsuki looked like she was blushing and she nodded. Orihime had never seen Tatsuki in that face before.

Maybe the relationship between Tatsuki-chan and Ishida-kun really worked out. Tatsuki in this future liked Ishida, yet 7 months ago, Orihime thought that Tatsuki didn't even give any look to him. Orihime wondered what was changed between them.

While her thought ran wild, she jointed back to the reality. She was stuck in here without any knowledge and memory about what she did in 7 months of the future. And she needed to go back to the past, go back to her 1-3 classroom before everybody thought that she was crazy in the future. _But how?_

Suddenly the bell of the next period rang and Orihime was startled.

"Ah, class is gonna start. I have to go to my next class. So bye you girls. See you at 7 tonight."

"Why does Chizuru go to another class?"

"She has a free-choice class in the 6th period. Something involves art."

"Free-choice class?"

"In our second year, we will freely choose a class to study to get the extra credit. Mine is home maintenance. And if I remember your is home economics right?"

_Home economics? That sounded like something that I would choose in the future. I liked to cook after all._

"Ah, yeah, te heh…" Orihime made a cute gesture.

While she returned to her seat, she tried to think about her current situation while listened to the future lesson at the same time.

She didn't understand much about what sensei said in the class despite she always had good grade in her year.

Sensei's words somehow became series of codes and lullabies that made her eyelids heavier and heavier. By the time she knew, she already felt asleep on the desk.

* * *

To be continued...


	4. CHAPTER3: TEST THE DREAM

**CHAPTER 3: TEST THE DREAM**

"Inoue!!"

_Someone was calling her name again. _

"Inoue Orihime!!"

_Who?_

"Wake up!"

_Wake up? Did I fall asleep again? Sensei might be mad. I had to wake up. _

_But even if I wake up, I was still in the future. _

_Wait!! _

_Future!!_

"My future!!" She startled and suddenly got her head up.

"Are you dreaming about your future? In that case you should deal with your current situation first." A female voice was talking.

As Orihime's vision was clear, she saw Oichi-sensei, her first year homeroom sensei.

Did she come back from the future? Or was she still dreaming? To test that, she pinned at the back of her hand hard.

"Ow." She didn't expect that it was hurt.

"What are you doing, Inoue-san?" Oichi-sensei looked at Orihime's action and wondered what happened with this girl today.

"I'm just checking if I'm dreaming." Orihime said and gave out her silly smile.

"You looked like that you were just dreaming for a while there. I think you're tired after preparing for the final exam. Do you want to go to the infirmary?"

_Oichi-sensei, you advised the same thing as my second year sensei. _

She kept the thought in herself or else Oichi-sensei might think her crazy.

"No, I'm okay. Thank you, sensei."

When she was sure that Oichi-sensei went back to the board, she looked around her surroundings to make sure everything was the same and okay. That she wasn't dreaming.

What was happened just then? Did she time travel to the future? Or everything was just only her dream? Or did she suddenly get the ability of clairvoyant without knowing?

She shook her head with this absurd idea. Seeing the future through the dream seemed odd. Usually, clairvoyants saw the future through the glass ball. Wait, or was the glass ball used by the witches? And Orihime was just a normal human.

After that, she sighed at her own thought, because no normal human had ever experienced what she had been before. Getting kidnapped to another world and then saving the world.

Even if she had something called God-like power, she wasn't God so she was sure that she didn't have that ability to see the future.

In other words, it was like her normal fantasies and daydreaming. She tried to convinced herself and accepted the fact.

After the bell rang to end the period, Tatsuki came to her and asked,

"Are you sure that you got enough sleep yesterday? You were totally sleeping an entire period."

It was the same question that Tatsuki in the future asked. Orihime felt a little bit déjà vu and trembly asked Tatsuki the same question.

"Tatsuki-chan, which period are we now?"

Tatsuki looked at Orihime with a surprised and odd expression. She placed the palm of her hand to Orihime's forehead.

"Has your fever been going down?" She asked. And then Tasuki felt relieved that her best friend's body temperature was okay.

"You were sleeping for the first period. If you don't feel anything well, you can ask sensei the permission to go home early and rest."

"Is today Saturday, December 7th?" Orihime asked another question to make sure whether she should go home and rest like Tatsuki said or not if she was still in the future.

"Yes. Did you bring the wrong textbook for the day?"

"Ah. No. Maybe I didn't have enough sleep yesterday. So I tried to take it back by sleeping in the class. I'm fine right now." Orihime smiled silly.

She was back to her past. She shouldn't make Tatsuki worry because of her own health. Tastuki already helped and took care of her a lot since the day she came back to Karakura Town and because it was silly to tell Tastuki about her dream that she went the future. And Tatsuki had a boyfriend…

Ah right! Why didn't she try to test that?

"Tatsuki-chan?"

"Hm?"

"What do you think about Ishida-kun?"

Tatsuki was surprised at Orihime's question.

She thought that Orihime did really change after she came back. She seemed more thoughtful and mature.

And she started to pay attention to other guys besides Ichigo. This was new action that Orihime in the past had never done before.

Well, it was a good thing though. That she could realize there were other guys that were better than Ichigo a ton. And Ishida was not really bad.

"Well, Ishida is a decent guy to me."

Orihime somewhat felt happy with Tatsuki's answer. They actually had a good relationship.

So that meant the future that she saw was the truth? She needed one more question to be sure.

"Do you like him?"

Tatsuki was bit getting back at Orihime's sudden question. And she tried to settle the thought.

_Did Orihime change her target to Ishida? So she asked me to check whether I would accept him if in any case that Orihime liked him. _

_Maybe that was her question's meaning because there was no way that Orihime thought I would like Ishida in a romantic way right?_

"Well, it's not I dislike him or anything. We're classmate after all."

_Yeah, that's right. As long as he didn't do anything bad to Orihime, then I'm fine with him. _Tatsuki thought.

"Thank you Tatsuki-chan" Orihime was satisfied with Tastuki's answer.

Because right now their relationship was "classmate", not "couple", but because "Tatsuki didn't dislike him" so they might change into "couple" in the future. She was amused with the thought.

"_I don't dislike you."_

An image about _him_ flashed on her mind for a second.

Didn't _he_ also say the same as Tastuki said in her dream? Was that also a dream of the future?

Now now mixing between the dream and the future and the reality was not a good thing. Also she thought that Ulquiorra would never say that to her.

The last thing he said to her was "I think I actually had some interest in you people." He didn't mean anything about her right?

Although it was him who reached his hand to her first, she never had any chance to confirm at what he said. She just felt that he had more things to say to her, but he couldn't make it into words. She just felt that he had "something" with her. But she was not sure if that "something" was the same as what she thought.

Though she herself was sure that it was Ulquiorra who had already taken her heart away. He was the one who changed her and made her feel that she wasn't a useless one.

Because she was never afraid of him. She was feeling more than sadness when he was gone. Some feeling that she couldn't describe it exactly in her heart. It wasn't like that when she thought about Kurosaki-kun.

Now she didn't feel any heartache when she looked or thought about Kurosaki-kun anymore. But she still felt happy if she saw him, just like a friend. Right. Just like a friend.

_We were nakama after all_.

Now she could look at Kurosaki-kun just like she looked at Chad without any problem.

She wouldn't need Kurosaki-kun's protection anymore because she could protect herself. Or in any case that she couldn't, she would think a way that she could fight and protect by herself. Because she had her nakama with her, she will do her best to fight alone until they could come to aid her.

Shun Shun Rikka did become stronger because she was stronger after all. And it wasn't bad to retreat if she found no way to win.

Why did she never have such thought before? At the beginning, she was stubborn for the desire to fight, but she couldn't find any good way to fight other than training herself to get more power and end up being a burden.

She didn't realize that protecting was also a kind of fighting. Thinking strategy and finding enemy's weakness were also ways of fighting.

She couldn't believe that she herself could see through the illusion made by Aizen's Kyouka Suigetsu and found a way to counter it. So she could help her friends to defeat Aizen.

It was all because of _him_.

It was _him_ who gave her a tip to cope with Aizen's power because he himself didn't believe anything unreal or immaterialized that couldn't be seen by his eyes. So illusion didn't work on _him_. She rejected her vision that could see illusion into the vision that could only see the real. And then she used her power to her nakama so that they could get out of Aizen's illusion.

Everything she did in the battle was because of _him_. Because of _his_ words to her. Or she could say the real reason that battle had won was not because of her, but because of Ulquiorrra who told her _his_ nature. Or not, she was still the same useless Orihime that kept crying and couldn't help anyone or anything.

The bell rang stopping her flashback thought. She sat back to her seat and tried to concentrate more in her lesson. She didn't feel tired or sleepy anymore.

* * *

To be continued...


	5. CHAPTER4: DREAM IN THE INFIRMARY

**CHAPTER 4: DREAM IN THE INFIRMARY**

Lunch break.

She was having her bento lunch with her friends, Tatsuki-chan, Chizuru-chan, Michiru-chan, Ryo-chan and Mahana-chan.

Today lunch was her utmost handmade meal, pasta with red beans and tomatoes. It was just like making rice balls and noodles together.

Though her friends saw Orihime eating her bizarre lunch with their utmost respect. Tatsuki was the one who had a worried look.

"Orihime, you had just gotten your fever down. Is it okay to eat… solid food? Do you want to try some of my chicken salad sandwiches?"

"It's okay, Tatsuki-chan. I had them yesterday and I'm still fine." As Orihime was talking, she added more mayonnaise and ketchup to the meal.

"No. The problem is not that you're fine. I'm saying the food might be too much for your health. You should at least visit the school infirmary to have the medicine for your fever." Tatsuki said and glanced at the squared bento box which now only had 2 colors: red and yellow.

She wanted to tell Orihime should get any stomachache medicine just in case because her iron stomach might not be work if she was sick again. But she stopped at her thought.

In the fifth period, Orihime had the feeling that her fever was gone up again. She felt a bit dizzy and headache. Maybe it was better if she visit the school infirmary to ask more medicines.

She got up and asked sensei the permission. Tatsuki asked if Orihime could go there by herself. Orihime smiled and said it was okay, she just came to get some medicines.

As she got herself to the infirmary, she opened the door, but she didn't see sensei in here. She was looking around. But she didn't know where she could take for her flu medicine.

And she saw a bed.

_Maybe it would be better if I lay down. My fever was gone up because my blood pressure was gone up right?_

She did according to what she thought and she was surprised at how comfort the infirmary bed was.

Her eyes started to close slowly until nothing that she could feel beside silence and darkness. She was sleeping again.

This time, no one was going to wake her up. By the time she opened her eyes, she realized that she had been sleeping again. She thought that she had slept too much today.

She looked outside the curtain of the bed and she saw the infirmary's sensei. She got up and apologized to sensei that she came to ask for the cold medicine but somehow she ended up sleeping in the bed.

The female school doctor kindly look at her and said "It's okay. I don't mind."

And then she opened the case of her desk to give out the medicine to Orihime. Orihime took and put it in her mouth.

"But it'd better to feel healthy during the festival right?" The school doctor smiled and said.

"Festival? Do we have any festival today?" Orihime caught up a strange word coming from sensei.

"Do you forget what date today is? It's Tanabata. You should go home and dress up so you could join the festival tonight with your boyfriend." Sensei laughed at her silly question.

_Tanabata?_

_But today was… or…did she just go to the future again? And during her sleep again?_

She looked at her own uniform and her second year badge. She was too tired to think about how to deal with the situation.

It seemed that she went to the future while sleeping and the dream continued as her future self in Tanabata's festival.

She thought maybe she had to wait for herself in the past waking up and then she could go back. In that case, she had no choice to cope up with the future situation.

She said goodbye to the school doctor and picked up her schoolbag which was lying on the bed. When she strolled down the hallway, she looked at the sky. It was dusk. She realized that the school had ended today.

What should she do now?

She couldn't keep wandering in the school. So the only choice was going back home and joining the festival while waiting for this dream end, waiting for her past self awake. Maybe she could find out a way to return when she went to her future home. Was it the same apartment that she stayed in the past or a different one?

Maybe it was not bad to discover the future after all. The future's today was Tanabata after all. And there were rumors that mysterious things usually happened in Karakura Town during Tanabata. And didn't her friends in the future say they would join her at the festival tonight? She wanted to see their future versions.

She stopped at her thought about this paradox future.

Why did she suddenly start to dream about the future and even go to there in the dream?

She never had those before until… until she was parted with Ulquiorra. She started to have endless dreams about him that didn't make sense to her. And now was this dream about Tanabata's festival.

And why did her future self look forward to Tanabata? Ulquiorra was not _here_ anymore.

Wait, why did she suddenly think immediately of Ulquiorra when she thought Tanabata?

Was he Hikoboshi to _Orihime_?

Surely he didn't look like much although his horn always reminded her as a bull's horn. But Hikoboshi didn't have any horn at all. Hikoboshi didn't even have wings.

When she stood up in front of her apartment's room, she searched for the key in the schoolbag and used it to open the door. So she still hadn't changed her place during 7 months.

She looked around every corner at her room to see if there were any changes or not.

Ah, it seems that her own couch chair in the living room was change into a sofa. It was longer, bigger and softer. While everything in her room had colors, this sofa was pure white. Just like the color of the sofa in her cell in Las Noches.

When she went to her bedroom, she started to see something that she never thought that she would see it again.

* * *

To be continued...


	6. CHAPTER5: SWORD, BRACELET & YUKATA DREAM

**CHAPTER 5: SWORD, BRACELET AND YUKATA DREAM**

She was still in shock at the smooth, long and green thing on her study desk as she couldn't comprehend by herself to explain why it was here.

It was… a sword. A zankaputou.

It was _his_ zankaputou.

She realized its eye shape guard, its color even its length.

Why was it here? Or rather why did her future self have it in her room?

She remembered that when he was gone, she couldn't find any trace of him left. She couldn't even use her reject power to call him back. She also didn't see his zankaputou anywhere.

She reminded what Ishida-kun and Kurosaki-kun said about Arrancar's zankaputou. It was a seal for their power. When they released, the zankaputou disappeared and they were back to their true form. They would return to their humanoid form only when they resealed their power back to the sword.

If Ulquiorra's zankaputou was here, did that mean Ulquiorra was still alive? _Alive in this world?_

Unknowingly, she felt warm on her cheek. Her tears started to flow out on her thought. And it seemed not stopping.

She held tightly the green sword in her arm, crying and murmured, "Ulquiorra!"

Now she knew clearly what _he_ was to her. It seemed that the thought about him still being alive was so strong that all of her feeling she was holding up until now started to burst out.

She didn't want to think about him, yet she couldn't forget. She wanted to forget, yet she still kept thinking about him.

She even thought if she could have another chance to meet him again, she would tell him her real feeling. That she didn't want him to go away. That she wanted him to be with her.

While holding the zankaputou, she wiped her tears and started to look at the next thing beside the sword on the desk. It was the yukata for the festival.

On top of the yukata, there was a bracelet that Ulquiorra gave her before. The bracelet that he told her to "put it on so no one can sense your presence besides me."

She was sure that she had already given it back to Ulquiorra when she first came to Las Noches because it had no use there.

If this one also came back to her together with the sword, then where was Ulquiorra? What was really happened during 7 months later, _Inoue Orihime_?

She started looking around in her bedroom to see if there were any more of his thing around here. But there was nothing more besides the sword and the bracelet.

She sat down on the bed, realized that something was under the blanket. A book? The title was "Fairy tales of Tanabata."

It was the book that her brother used to read for her every time when she went to bed. She liked the Tanabata's story. The story about the lovers that could meet again in the Milky Way.

Or maybe that was the reason her future self was looking forward to. Did she want to make a wish for him coming back?

But there were his sword and "his" bracelet here. And she couldn't explain why her future self put them together as in a _set_ on the desk.

Or if she went to the festival, would she be able to meet Ulquiorra? This thought comforted her and she wanted to try it as long as there was a bit possibility to meet him. She wanted to try at that possibility.

She looked at the alarm clock. It showed 6:00 P.M. Didn't the school doctor say that festival start at 7:00 P.M.? Then she only had 1 hour to prepare.

* * *

By the time she finished to don her yukata in, it was 6:30 P.M.

She never thought that it was hard to put on yukata by herself. Before, it was always her brother who helped her wearing it. Surprisingly, her brother was good in making her more pretty.

She looked at herself in yukata in the mirror.

She didn't have this one in the past. This one looked new and expensive. And the color was so pretty. It was a scarlet kimono with blue flowers pattern. The flowers seemed similar as her Shun Shun Rikka. Her sash was blue in color and had bit white like snowflakes. She wondered how her poor self could afford this one in the future.

"_Surprisingly, it suits you."_

She was startled and looked behind her at what she thought that she heard it right, but she didn't see anyone. She just recalled at what he said to her in her head. The first time when he came in without any notice and commented on her uniform.

Still at that time, she was more surprised at him standing there for god-knows-how-long rather than surprised that his compliment on her uniform.

_Had he been watching me change clothes? Maybe not, right?_

And it just seemed that he could read her thought because of what he said after that, "Don't make a fuss. I've been there just now."

15 minutes left for her to go to the festival, but she had a problem.

How should she deal with his zankaputou? She couldn't leave it at home right?

If any case that he suddenly came to pick up and went away without her knowing, then it would be better if she kept it with her. Therefore he had no choice to come to her to take it back.

Maybe that was why her future self put it together with the yukata and the bracelet. She wanted to bring all of them together to the festival. She even made sure that she didn't forget anything even the sandals were also included in the set.

But walking around with a sword in the festival was not really a good idea. But this sword was a zankaputou, a soul cutter. Which meant normal people couldn't see it, right?

So there would be no problem.

The problem was where she could keep the zankaputou so that it wouldn't get caught in anything.

Should she put it in her sash like him? Or found something that she could hold it in the back like Hitsugaya's sword.

In the end, she couldn't decide which way to put the zankaputou. She just kept holding it in her arm and went out of the apartment.

She went toward the brightest place in the night sky where the festival took place with a zankaputou in her arm.

* * *

To be continued...


	7. CHAPTER6: REUNION DREAM

**CHAPTER 6: REUNION DREAM**

At the Karakura Shrine, summer festival was held every year on Tanabata.

Yet, it was like it had been a long time that she had come here. She used to come there with her brother when she was young.

And after her brother died, nobody would ask her to come to Tanabata festival anymore.

Until she met Tatsuki in middle school, Tatsuki invited Orihime to go with her family every year.

She didn't get chance to go to the festival in her first year of high school because she had to train her power and went to Soul Society to save Rukia instead. But she did have a nice party there.

The shrine was still crowded like as much as she remembered. She was looking around to spot on any familiar faces.

_There they were_. A group of girls standing at the shrine gate were chatting and looked like they were waiting for her.

Holding the zankaputou in her arm, Orihime ran toward their direction.

But she wasn't used to run in her sandals, so she tripped over her own feet.

As she closed her eyes to prepare that her face would get a hit with the ground, she felt nothing hurt. It seemed that her body stopped falling in the mid air.

As soon as she opened her eyes, she realized there was an arm which already caught her body before she sprawled on the sidewalk.

She couldn't help but bow down her head and blush with embarrassment as the arm held onto her and helped her up.

"As clumsy as ever, woman."

As the deep voice of a man was reaching to her ear, she was shivered with this familiar voice. Her legs suddenly got weak, and she found herself clinging onto the man's arm just to remain on her feet. As she looked up, she stood transfixed at the sight of the man beside her.

The man…he looked a bit different. Yet he looked familiar. His skin was not ashen white. The tear streaks on his face were gone, and the broken mask was no more to reveal the other side of his head. His raven hair was still messy like before.

However, she would never mistake those piercing green eyes, and the first thing that caught in her eyes was the fierce green color of his eyes.

"Ulquiorra…" She tried to breath out the word.

The raven-haired man stared at her another moment longer as if he tried to memorize every sight of her into his eyes. From the vibrant orange color of her hair to the scarlet color of her yukata. Then finally, he responded. "Orihime."

Reassured by his confirmation, she began to cry, overjoyed to finally see him again. If this was really a dream, then she thanked God for giving her that dream. If this would become true in her future, she also thanked God for letting her met Ulquiorra again.

"I told you stop crying, woman." Ulquiorra had a surprised look. He didn't expect that strong reaction coming from the woman after seeing him.

He reached out his hand and wiped the tear falling from her eyes. He felt warmth on the fingertips from both her tear and her blushed cheek.

"But you're back. And I'm so happy that my tears just keep falling." Orihime was stunned by his gentle gesture a little bit. She tried to wipe out her tears and gave back a smile.

"Didn't I already tell you that I would come back?" He gave her a statement with his calm voice.

Orihime was going to reply to Ulquiorra that "He didn't say that" but then she realized that she was in the future here, and she know nothing about herself in this future. Or how Ulquiorra could come back and meet her?

But she still wanted to ask him though.

"Since when did you come back?"

"Yesterday. I told you to wait at your house today, so that I would come to pick you up. Yet you have gone there by yourself." Ulquiorra said with a bit irritation in his voice.

Although his voice was still monotone as usual, Orihime knew there was a tiny bit of irritation because he made a sigh after he said that she went first by herself, but not waiting for him.

Orihime actually didn't know what Ulquiorra told her future self about that. She came from the past after all.

"Orihime, what's matter?" Ulquiorra wondered why this woman was so quiet today.

Several emotions ran through her at once. She didn't know which one she could start first. There was something she had to know, something that was eating at her. She looked sad.

"Are you angry because I've selfishly gone and left you alone?"

Orihime stared at him when she heard his question. Even if he didn't have any tear streaks on his face now, she could see the sadness in his dark green eyes. She had seen them before.

It was a quick moment when she tried to run toward him before he had turned into ash. And all she could see between her fingertips was an unusual expression coming from Ulquiorra and his eyes. The same eyes that asked her "Are you afraid of me?" and the same eyes that looked at her full of sadness and regretful sentiment at that last moment.

"No, I'm not angry." Orihime said with the determinant in her eyes. She looked at him with the same expression of no fear or anger toward him like she did before.

And then she realized today he didn't have his usual white Arrancar uniform.

Instead, it was a dark green kimono with white stripped pattern. When she looked at his neck area, she realized that he didn't have his hollow hole in his chest anymore.

She wondered if he was in the gigai or this was his form after he returned from the ash.

Because… because… his zankaputou was in her hand right now. How could he was in material form while his zankaputou was in the soul form? He and his sword were like one right?

Just like Kurosaki-kun and his zankaputou, Zangetsu.

"Now I already came here and got my sword back." As Ulquiorra was talking, he took back the zankaputou in Orihime's hands and put that inside his sash.

He pointed his finger to direction where her friends were standing, "You should go to your friends' place."

Orihime was surprised at his action.

In the past, he didn't allow her go anywhere alone. And now he was letting her go with her friends alone. Orihime felt happy that she saw some changes in Ulquiorra, yet she felt a bit sad that Ulquiorra just let her go easily like that.

"But will you go back when I go to them?" She grabbed on his kimono and looked at him with her large grey eyes just like a spoiled child who didn't want to let go off her parents in the first day of school.

"No. I won't. I want you to go tell them that that you're going with me so that they'll stop waiting for you."

Orihime was surprised. Ulquiorra didn't change much. He was still the same. He didn't let go off her at all.

When she thought that he just came here to get back his sword and let her go with her friends, he actually surprised her that he came just to go with her only, not together with her friends.

"Or do you want me to go there and tell them?"

As much as Orihime suddenly realized his question, Ulquiorra already went to where her friends were.

She intended to go there but she didn't know how to talk to her friends about going with Ulquiorra because she wasn't sure if they knew Ulquiorra in the future or not.

She just stood there and watched him talking with them from far way.

_Since when had Ulquiorra become friendly with her friends?_

Chizuru of the future said something about her future self getting a _boyfriend_? It couldn't be… that her _boyfriend_ was…

As she looked, they were still in their conversation. _What were they talking about? Why were they taking so long?_

Impatiently, she was going to come to their place, and she saw Ulquiorra turned around and walked back to her.

"What did you talk to them?"

"I just told them that you are going with me. No negotiation."

What he had said was so short contrasted with the time what he took so long with her friends there. He used to say that rushing was not his nature. But still…

As Orihime was still silent, Ulquiorra looked at her puzzled look and kept talking.

"And the short black haired hair woman made me promise that I would bring you back home intact. Why do you humans always like to make promises about foolish thing? Of course, I will not let anything harm you or take you away from me."

Orihime was not sure whether Ulquiorra himself realized that he had just said something incredible here or not. But Orihime felt embarrassed at his words and was very very happy inside. She couldn't help but keep lowering down her head to hide her blushing.

"Come, woman."

At his command, she suddenly raised her head up and saw him reaching out his palm to her. She automatically reached out her hand back in respond.

The touch sentiment between those hands made her feel that she wasn't dreaming after all. She felt so right. The warmth of her hand and the coolness of his hand. They almost completed each other's body temperature.

Feeling excited, she ended up dragging him toward the festival.

"Then let's enjoy the festival. Ulquiorra!!"

* * *

To be continued...


	8. CHAPTER7: TANABATA DREAM

**CHAPTER 7: TANABATA DREAM**

After a moment of overexcited, now they were walking slowly through the long streamers on the street with a lot of outdoor stalls selling food and providing carnival games on the side.

The cool breeze was blowing at night contrasted with the summer heat of the day.

Orihime finally let go of his hand, and now she was clutching both her hand together and walking side by side with Ulquiorra. He hadn't talked any word after that, just walking and looking around the surroundings.

Her body had been feeling as light as a cloud. Usually at school, the boys were always around. But having just only Ulquiorra with her was making her heart pound.

The festival she had used to come before looked so different. Despite of the crowd around her, she had the feeling that only her and Ulquiorra on this street.

She had been alone with him several times in the past but she had never felt nervous like that before. She wondered if it was… because she was… in _love_…

"Orihime."

She was startled when she heard him called out her name, "Huh!? Yeah!?"

"What's this?" He pointed at the water pool in one of outdoor stalls. "Why did they put those colorful balls in the water box?"

Orihime glanced at where he pointed.

She smiled and said, "It's called Yo-yo fishing. Those are water balloons. We used a hook with paper handler and fish out the balloons with the rubber bands tied to them."

"Lady and gentleman, would you like to try out?" The stall's owner joyfully gave both Orihime and Ulquiorra the paper handler with a hook.

"Do you want to try, Ulquiorra?" Orihime asked him. The woman didn't hide any amusement on her face at all.

This was the first time in his Hollow life that Ulquiorra came to join the human festival.

And he thought it wasn't bad to see something new that he had never seen before. Also Orihime was here with him, so it was okay.

But of course, no one would be good at the first try. And Ulquiorra realized trying to do by himself was harder than looking at others doing.

Maybe it was because he applied too much force that the paper snapped before he could get the ball. And he knew that he would try only for 3 times before he decided this game was _trash_.

Meanwhile, Orihime was doing well. The stall's owner looked at her with his respect and amazement. So did Ulquiorra.

Just how many balloons did she fish with only a paper and a hook? She almost fished out all of the balloons in the pool.

"Damn, you're good, nee-chan!!"

Ulquiorra couldn't be help but praise her, "Oh ho impressive."

It seemed that Ulquiorra's comment at her made her face redder. She said with her soft voice, "I-I used to do this a lot with my brother."

In the end, she only took two balloons and left all of what she fished back to the owner.

She called out Ulquiorra who was walking in the front. Her blushing face hadn't toned down any bit.

"Ano… Um… Ulquiorra. He-Here, here you go…" She gave out one of them to Ulquiorra who was looking at her with his surprise.

Ulquiorra took the water balloon and hold the rubber band with his amusement. "Thanks."

Orihime swore for a second that she saw a smile flashing on Ulquiorra's face. But as she blinked and looked back, his face came back as neutral.

He didn't seem angry or bored. Just normal. Just neutral. Still, she was happy that Ulquiorra took the balloon.

The next stall they stopped was a darting-and-winning for a stuffed toy.

Because Orihime kept staring at the blue kitty stuffy toy in the stand and saying how cute it was. Ulquiorra asked her hold out the balloons while he went to the stand.

He took the dart and threw and won with ease. Of course, he had good eyes to pin point the coordination.

Just look at Orihime was clapping her hands and praising how good Ulquiorra was with the amazement in her large eyes.

If she wanted all, he could take out the whole stall without any effort. But he only aimed for the blue kitty on the top which was placed on the hardest post to aim.

And he succeeded on his first try. He gave the stuffed toy to her. Orihime had blushed in gratification, clinging to the stuffed blue kitty.

For an hour walking, suddenly, there was a crumbling sound around them.

"What's that disturbing sound?"

Ulquiorra was startled and looked around to detect which source of that strange sound was coming from while Orihime put both her hands on her stomach and lowered her face with her utmost embarrassment. "Sorry. Ulquiorra. It's just my stomach. I guess that I'm hungry." Oh yeah, she hadn't eat anything besides her bento lunch today.

"Your body makes those sounds when you are hungry? Then why did I not hear it before when you were in your cell?" Ulquiorra opened his eyes widely. His expression didn't change, but there was confusion and… amusement in his eyes. For some reason, his words made her feel foolish all the time.

"Because at that time, I'm not really hungry." She turned her head to the side, tried not to look into his eyes. Somehow, she felt a bit irritation.

"No. More likely that you're hungry, yet you refused to eat. If you are hungry, you should say so just like what your body said."

Although his voice was still monotone and his face was totally deadpan, Orihime felt that Ulquiorra was teasing her.

Yeah. Maybe he was teasing her. Why did Ulquiorra suddenly talk to her like he was lecturing the child who kept refusing to eat the food?

"In that situation, who would have the mood to eat?" She pouted and tried to voice out her reason for not eating at that time.

"Wasn't it because you refused to eat that your body got weaker after that?"

This time, Orihime couldn't be able to argue verbal with Ulquiorra because all the things he said were true. Her body did have a wreck down and she had a fever for a week.

"Anyway, let's find something for you to eat." Ulquiorra said and looked around for any food stalls.

"I wanted to try some takoyaki and cotton candy." Catching the opportunity, Orihime showed him what food she wanted to try in Tanabata.

After they went and got all the food they want, Ulquiorra and Orihime sat next to each other on one of the benches placed somewhere around the shrine.

While Orihime tried to put _jam_ on her takoyaki (how she could achieve the jam was the mystery), she saw Ulquiorra trying to savor the shaved ice pleasingly. She found it a bit amusing and asked him.

"Ulquiorra, you can eat shaved ice?"

"As long as it's edible, then I can put it in the mouth. Besides I think I like its coolness." As Ulquiorra answered, he put another ice spoon into his mouth.

Normally, when humans ate shaved ice, they shivered at its coolness. He should at least do the blinking to show the cool, but he didn't. His face didn't change anything at all.

"I see." She wondered maybe all cool guys liked something _cool_. Hitsugaya-kun also liked ice and he's _cool_ too.

* * *

To be continued...


	9. CHAPTER8: DREAM OF REALITY

**CHAPTER 8: DREAM OF REALITY**

After they finished all of the food, Ulquiorra threw all of the cartons and boxes leftover to the trash can.

Suddenly, there was an irritated image of a certain black and orange _trash_ catching into his vision.

He stood up, held Orihime's hand and dragged her away at where they sat quickly.

"E-eh, Ulquiorra!! What are you doing?" Orihime was surprised at his sudden action.

"Quiet, woman!! We'll go somewhere."

It seemed that Ulquiorra couldn't do the _sonido_ while he was in this material form. So he had no choice but using his own feet.

When they ran to the back of the shrine where Ulquiorra made sure that there was no any human around, he pulled out his sword and said the command.

"Bind, _Murciélago_."

The sword busted out as black rain and covered Ulquiorra. Orihime was puzzled at what Ulquiorra was going to do.

Still, she couldn't believe that he released his form to her at _this_ place. Was he going to show her the form with the tail, horns and wings he had before? But for what was purpose?

Orihime clutched both her hands on her chest, anxiously waiting him come out from the black _curtain_.

But despite at what she thought, he didn't change anything.

Or maybe not.

He didn't have his horns or tail. He didn't have his big Hollow hole on the chest and the look-like-blood flowing out from it. He didn't have his tear streaks and his eyes didn't change into other color.

But behind his back were his large bat wings.

It was really odd to see Ulquiorra wearing kimono and scandals while having bat wings behind his back. Still, for some reason, he was beautiful in another term.

"Your released form looks a bit different." Orihime said with her stunned eyes while Ulquiorra looked at his hand and his body and sighed.

"When I released my sword in this material form, it seems only giving me the wings. It doesn't return any powers that let me go back to my true form at all."

"Then why were you in the material form today?" Orihime wondered.

"I thought that you want me to go the festival with you. So I made a deal with that blond shinigami. For him to make a gigai that I can join with you humans."

As soon as Orihime was going to say any words, Ulquiorra immediately picked her up in a princess carrying way and shot up to the sky.

He was flying and bringing her with him.

Yes. They were _flying_.

Orihime couldn't help but clinging her hands tightly around his neck. As she was looking at the scenery from the height below her, the wind was blowing across her face. She felt both nervous and excited at the same time.

"Where are we going?" Orihime asked in her soft voice.

Ulquiorra didn't give her an answer. He kept flying. His eyes kept looking down like he was searching for something. Then he slowly landed down to the place.

"Here we are."

Orihime looked around, and she remembered this place.

This place was the appointed location that he ordered her to meet at midnight after he let her say farewell to the only one person without any notice.

Why did he bring her here?

After Ulquiorra let her down carefully, he resealed his sword and returned back to his human form.

He walked a little bit higher up to the hill. Orihime followed him and she saw what people called a _wonder_.

"Uwah… It's so pretty!"

Orihime could see her whole town view at night.

The scenery of the town below and the scenery of the night sky were just like reflected their light each other in a reverted image.

The lights from the building were just like the stars on the night sky. The Karasu River spreading across the town was just like the Milky Way on the sky which could only be seen clearly in Tanabata.

Orihime also saw the full moon. How many times had she looked at the eternal crescent moon in Las Noches? Now at this time, she was in her living world, admiring at the moon together with Ulquiorra.

The whole scenery that Ulquiorra showed her was so beautiful that could attract all lost souls into it.

"I used to look this scenery from above. As much I disdain those trashes who lived in it, I don't dislike the scenery."

Did Ulquiorra bring her here just to show her the view? How gentle of him.

She couldn't be help but was touched at his action.

Unconsciously, she was crying. Why? Did she feel sad because what just happened now would be over soon?

Because after all, she came from the past.

Even if she was grateful that she could meet Ulquiorra again in this future, she started to feel scared that Ulquiorra would not appear to her like that in the past.

"Orihime, what's wrong?" Ulquiorra was stunned at her sudden tears.

This was the 2nd time that she cried today, and because of him in both times.

Why did she keep crying every time he did something to her? But she said she cried because she was happy. This time, was she happy or was she not?

He called out her name on his reflex. It seemed he only called out her name when there were some things happened around that he himself couldn't explain the phenomenon.

"No, it's just everything happened today was just like a dream that I didn't want to wake up. I had never felt as much as happiness this time. And I'm afraid that will be over when I wake up."

_Happiness_? She felt sad because there was too much _happiness_. What a strange woman! Then he finally composed himself.

"Then, just treat it as a dream. Even if it was over, you still remember that dream..." Ulquiorra calmly said with his monotone voice. "…In there." He pointed out his finger to her chest.

After that, Ulquiorra dropped his hand down. He rolled his eyes to the side, to the town, he was staring the scenery emptily.

He said with his soft voice that she had ever heard from him.

"Because it's over, you can move on...Anything that doesn't end is meaningless in itself."

When Ulquiorra said those words, he had an odd look in his eyes that made him look very sad though.

Even if he didn't have any tear streaks on his face today, Orihime thought that he was about to cry.

He was talking like he had experienced it before. Maybe it was the wounded in his past. _Somethin_g happened in the past that made him couldn't be able to move on. _Something_ that Orihime thought that she shouldn't ask him about that.

And then he turned back to her and said. "And by the time, if you want to feel that _happiness_ again, just make it come true."

Orihime was stunned. What he said was right. She couldn't help but laughing.

Was he trying to comfort her? Though in an odd way too.

First, he kept talking something negative and placed himself in the situation. Next, he told his solution to the situation to her, just to make her feel better.

However, he didn't work out well with this same process at the time she slapped him though. But she thought she did feel better after slapping him and crying out loud.

* * *

To be continued...


	10. CHAPTER9: UNFORGETABLE DREAM

**CHAPTER 9: UNFORGETABLE DREAM**

He stared strangely at her and come closer.

"Also there's one more thing that I want to do."

His words made her curious.

"What's it?" Orihime asked him in her soft voice, lost in his gaze.

Without breaking eye contact, he placed a hand behind her head, slipping his fingers through her hair and brought his lips to hers.

Orihime took a few seconds for the shock to recur her mind. She realized that Ulquiorra was actually giving her a kiss.

While amusement filled in Ulquiorra as he watched her beautiful eyes widen and then flutter closed in bliss. Her soft lips pressed against his gently, almost cautiously.

And then they pulled away, Orihime's cheeks were pink slightly and her breath came out in small gasps.

She murmured shyly, but no word was coming out, blushing as she stared at him. She just had her _first_ kiss. And it felt good. She didn't know that Ulquiorra was a good kisser.

She touched his cheeks lightly with her hands. And they kissed again. His lips pressed against hers with more force.

He savored the warm and soft feel of her lips under his, savored the sweet scent of her skin, and when she caught sight of his burning lidded gaze as they kissed, he savored the sound of her moaning gently in his mouth.

He pulled apart for air as for the time passing while they kissed seemed for hours, and gazed at her hesitantly, both their chests heaving lightly.

"I should stop here. I promised that I'll bring you home intact. If I continue, I'm afraid that I would _eat_ all of you here and now."

Ulquiorra wanted to get away but he couldn't. He was intoxicated with her.

Their bare chests were still panting. Ulquiorra leaned forward and kissed the woman again.

But this time the kiss was shorter as he leaned downward and kissed her bare chest in the place where his hole used to be.

"Ulquiorra!!" Orihime couldn't be help but moaned out his name.

As Ulquiorra looked at her with an amusing look in his eyes, he couldn't help but smirk, a lazy smirk. He seemed to like it.

"I just made a mark on you. So just remember that you are mine. And don't forget ----"

Suddenly at that time, she couldn't hear anything of what Ulquiorra said at the end. She asked,

"Don't forget what?"

Her vision started to blur and she couldn't see Ulquiorra's figure in front of her anymore.

"Ulquiorra…"

She couldn't see him anymore besides darkness. Her consciousness was losing. What was happened to her? Had her fever gone up?

* * *

"Orihime."

Someone was calling her again. The voice was so familiar.

"Orihime. Ah. You finally wake up."

By the time she opened her eyes, all she saw above was the white color of curtain and Tatsuki's face.

Orihime was lying on the bed. The infirmary bed. Did she just wake up and go back to the past?

Seeing Tatsuki's worry face, Orihime made her voice, "Tatsuki-chan."

Tatsuki made a relieved face. Tatsuki helped Orihime get up and gave her the schoolbag.

"I was looking for you since you haven't come back after going to the infirmary. The school has already ended."

Orihime looked at the window and she realized that it was dusk. So she did really come back to the past.

She felt disappointed a little bit. And then she felt something wet. She reached out her hand and touched her back.

She realized that she sweated too much for her uniform to wet.

It seemed that her fever had gone up again and lowered down just now according to the school doctor.

Orihime asked Tatsuki if Tatsuki had another uniform so she could change her wet uniform. She couldn't walk back home like that.

Luckily, Tatsuki kept another sweater in her locker. She went there to take it while telling Orihime wait here and take off the wet shirt.

As she was taking off her shirt, an image of a red mark flashed by when she looked at the small mirror on sensei's desk.

She turned and looked it back again. There was really a little red mark in the middle of her chest. Was it a bug bite?

But then she started to remember what had just happened with Ulquiorra in the dream. Or rather in the future. Her face started to have the same red color of the mark.

_Wasn't that not real? It must be bug bite. I was thinking too much. Ah ha ha ha._

She was laughing in her thought. As much as she composed herself, she still thought it was a really nice dream after all.

"_Don't forget…"_

"I won't. There's no way that I would forget those kind of thing and with you too."

Orihime whispered. It was so small and soft that no one could hear it.

Tatsuki returned and gave her the sweater. As Orihime was putting it on, Tatsuki asked.

"Is it okay if I walk home together with you?"

Orihime smiled and nodded. "Um. I also want to. "

As both Orihime and Tatsuki walked down to the street, Orihime looked at Tatsuki and asked with her serious eyes.

"Ne, Tatsuki-chan. What will your reaction be if I tell you that I will get a boyfriend in the future?"

"Hm? Well…" _So you really intended to get a boyfriend huh?_ Tatsuki thought and replied the matter seriously as her best friend.

"As long as your boyfriend treasures you, then I won't mind. And as long as you like him, then I will be happy for you."

Tatsuki scratched lightly her face with her finger, a little bit blushing as if she was just saying something cheesy. But that was all her real feeling.

"Thank you, Tastuki-chan!" Orihime smiled happily when she heard Tatsuki's answer.

She hugged her in the middle of the street that caught Tatsuki off guard. But Tastsuki also smiled and hugged her back.

And then Orihime held Tastuski's hand and started walking faster to her home. She wanted to tell Tastuki about her dream in the future when they arrived at her apartment.

She wasn't able to hear the end of what Ulquiorra in the future said. What was he going to tell her? "Don't forget" what…?

But it wouldn't be long that she would hear it again in the future later. And by the time she would meet him again…

She and Ulquiorra would have another adventure in the new dreamland.

* * *

"_Don't forget… that you said you love me, woman."_

* * *

**END OF SUMMER FESTIVAL DREAM**

I intend to make another fic for Ulquiorra's side. Yet, time's short so I only finished this fic satisfiedly. Thank you for reading. I'll be happy if I receive your review.

See you next time in the next Ulquiorra and Orihime's adventure.


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